By Jhonny Gonzalez

WBA heavyweight champion David Haye and his team have protested over Gino Rodriguez being the referee for Saturday's unification with IBO/WBO/IBF champion Wladimir Klitschko in Hamburg, Germany. They were upset because Rodriguez worked several of Wladimir's fights in the past. Gilberto Mendoza, vice-president of the WBA, said his sanctioning body has no issue with Rodriguez being the referee of choice. Because the fight is a unification, the sanctioning bodies took a vote and Gino Rodriguez was the end result.

"We don´t have any objections on the Klitschko vs. Haye referee Genaro "Gino" Rodriguez. We trust and believe in [his] professionalism and capacity. But Haye´s camp feels uncomfortable because he worked in Wladimir´s previous fights. It is our duty to hear and support WBA champion. Since Klitschko vs. Haye is a heavyweight unification title match, the sanctioning bodies took a vote on the referee, resulting in Gino Rodriguez," Mendoza said.